Dog Day Sunday: All About Sammy

Since my little mutt is about to turn 10 this month, the Dog Day Sunday I figured I’d talk all about my marvelous bird hunter and nap taker extraordinaire!

The day that we got Sammy was just a regular January day. I was about to be 12 years old in March and my brother was 10. All my brother did at this time was beg my folks for a dog. A dog was all he wanted when he was little, but my father always protested it, citing allergies.

The day we brought her home was super average. My brother and I were both homeschooled at the time and we had finished our work. My mom had left, saying that my dad needed something, and so my brother and I put on Good Boy (which was his favorite movie since it was all about a boy who saved up money to get a dog, which happened to be from outer space). It was ironic because the opening of the film featured a song all about how the singer wish they could have a puppy and I remember my brother turning and saying to me. “Yeah, Cork, I really want a puppy.”

We didn’t even finish the movie because I had gotten a text from my mom saying that she needed Chris outside. I paused the movie, told him to go, and I waited. I waited a while before finally trekking downstairs to see my brother in the garage crying on the floor while Mom was holding a small dog in a Tootsie Roll blanket.

Later that evening, it was explained that my dad’s business partner saw our little babe on the side of the road just walking around. He pulled over and opened his door, asking her where she was going and she immediately hopped into the car. He had gone through two other people that couldn’t take her and we were her last hope.

Honestly, who could say no to that face?

Now she used to be super timid. When we would walk her outside, we had to be on the sidewalk because the cars scared her. Now she’s a mouthy brat. If you ring the doorbell, or be anywhere near her, she’ll bark her head off.

Her name was mostly my idea, but my brother said it so they liked it more from his mouth than mine. I had three names I liked, all Nickelodeon related: E.T., Porkchop, and Sam.

E.T. was due in part to my obsession with The Naked Brothers Band, and her name would have been short for Elizabeth Taylor (Thanks Mom and Dad for rejecting this idea!). Porkchop not only came from Doug, but the fact that at dinner that night, she had jumped up and tried to eat porkchop off the table. That got rejected too. I could tell that she had a love of meat, which reminded me a lot of Sam from iCarly, so that became the winning name.

Now y’all are probably looking at her and wondering “what breed is that?” Sam is a German Shepard/Chihuahua mix. Really.

The vet said that was likely her mix since he has never got much bigger (like a Shepard would), and she had big Chihuahua ears. It’s also how we found out that she was around 3 months old when we got her, making her birthday in October!

Flashforward 10 years later and she loves to nap (she’s napping and snoring right now as I’m tying this). She has little quirks to her – like how some toys she tears the eyes off and pulls out their stuffing, but others she’s delicate with. If you squeak her toy too hard, she gets visibly upset. She also really loves carrots (which are great for dogs).

Sam is also an expert bird hunter!

A few years ago we had a pool in our backyard that had handrails. My mother and I noticed there was a pigeon sitting on one who would not move for anything. Sam was freaking out about the bird and wouldn’t get in the pool to get it (she hates water and baths!). My mom was worried it was laying an egg or something so she called my father and we waited.

While my mom was filming the scene, she noticed that there were feathers around the pathway from our patio area to the pool, and everything pieced together. When my father finally got home, he had to use a pool cleaner to get it off the rail. It immediately tried to fly and my dog went nuts trying to get it. She had broke its wing and was torturing it.

I love Sam.

She’s such an integral part of our family now that it’s hard to think of life before her. She’s a blessing and I consider her my little sister.

Have a story about your own loveable pooch? Send your photos and stories to webmaster@geekgirlworld.com and we’ll future your dog during Dog Day Sunday AND enter you to win a pet edition of Loot Crate!